Proposed bill to keep the Bears in Illinois fails to get pushed through, and now we see how serious the team is about Plan B
The Chicago Bears failed to get a bill passed in Illinois prior to the deadline, making the only viable option to turn their attention to the Indiana deal for the team’s new stadium project.
After a late night in Illinois, the state’s House of Representatives ultimately did not vote on the Chicago Bears’ proposed stadium bill before adjourning. In football terms, the Hail Mary pass to keep the Bears in the home state landed short of the end zone.
The proposed deal did, however, get enough votes to pass through the state’s Senate after previously shooting down the previous “PILOT” proposal.
“I think what we’ve done here with this bill today is establish a framework that would enable the Bears to build a stadium in the State of Illinois,” Senator William Cunningham said late Sunday night. “What the bill does is it allows municipalities to own stadium authority, any municipality with a population more than 70,000 located in Cook County could do this. Could be Arlington Heights, could be Chicago, could be a handful of other towns that meet the population threshold. This would give the Bears what they want.”
The proposal, if it was passed by the House, would have allowed the Bears to fund its own stadium with private funding while making the building publicly owned so the team wouldn’t have to pay property taxes. However, the House did not pass the bill by the deadline.
Where does this leave the Chicago Bears in relation to staying in Illinois
Since the proposal was not passed by the deadline, the state government of Illinois won’t be back until November to potentially vote on a revised deal, unless a special session is called this summer.
“We’ll continue discussions on a number of issues, including our approach to the Bears stadium question, this summer,” House Speaker Chris Welch said. “I think our caucus is used to processes. Our caucus is used to taking our time and doing it right.”
Chicago Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren said earlier this year that the team planned to have a resolution on a stadium deal by late spring or early summer. Shortly after the adjournment, the Bears released a statement that ensures the team will continue trying to work out a deal with the state of Illinois.
“We will finalize our evaluation of both Arlington Heights and Hammond, and remain on the late spring/early summer timeline that we have previously communicated. We will provide an update when we have a decision to share,” the organization shared.
Chicago Bears now get to show whether or not the Indiana option was a bluff or not
Instead of waiting until the fall, or rely on a special session to get called, the Bears’ other option would be to turn its attention back to Indiana. Unless the team’s reported interest in considering a move to Hammond, Indiana was a bluff all along.
Indiana, however, showed real interest from the jump in bringing the Bears across state lines, similar to what happened with the Kansas City Chiefs.
“Indiana is open for business, and our pro-growth environment continues to attract major opportunities like this partnership with the Chicago Bears,” Indiana Governor Mike Braun said back in February. “We’ve identified a promising site near Wolf Lake in Hammond and established a broad framework for negotiating a final deal. If approved, the proposed amendment to Senate Bill 27 puts forward the essential framework to complete this agreement, contingent upon site due diligence proceeding smoothly. . .
“We have built a strong relationship with the Bears organization that will serve as the foundation for a public-private partnership, leading to the construction of a world-class stadium and a win for taxpayers.”
Soon after, Indiana’s Senate Bill 27 was passed with a 95-4 vote, establishing a Northwest Indiana stadium authority that would allow bonds to help fund a new stadium for the Bears.
The deal passed in Indiana was similar to the final deal the Bears were trying to get passed last night in Illinois. The team’s next action will show how serious the team actually is about considering a move across state lines, or if the team plans to wait out Illinois even longer, potentially into the late fall.